Hood latch with positive return release lever

ABSTRACT

A hood latch for use in locking the hood of an automobile to the body which may be released from the driving compartment. The latch includes a plunger, normally mounted on the hood of an automobile, and a latching assembly, normally positioned on the body. The latching assembly includes a catch which holds the plunger in a locked position and a release member which releases the catch. The release lever is positively returned to its initial position by movement of the plunger in and out of the latching assembly.

United States Patent 1111 3,572,793

[72] Inventor Clair 1. Cole [56] References Cited Rockford, 111. UNITED STATES PATENTS [211 P 840,957 2,508,090 5/1950 Beems 292/129 [22] Filed July 11,1969

2,806,727 9/1957 Johnstone.... 292/216 [45] Patented 1971 2,877,038 3/1959 Kramer 292/216 [73] Assrgnee AtwoodVacuumMachmeCompany 2924 473 2/196O Krause u 292/11 3,378,289 4/1968 136616111111 292/31 Primary Examiner-Ernest R. Purser Assistant Examiner-Robert L. Wolfe Attorney-Parker, Carter and Markey [54] HOOD LATCH WITH POSITIVE RETURN ABSTRACT: A hood latch for use in locking the hood of an fi automobile to the body which may be released from the drivrawmg ing compartment. The latch includes a plunger, normally [S2] U.S. Cl 292/216, mounted on the hood of an automobile, and a latching as- 70/240,292/229 sembly, normally positioned on the body. The latching as- [51] Int. Cl. E05c 3/02 sembly includes a catch which holds the plunger in a locked [50] Field of Search 292/1 1, 45, position and a release member which releases the catch. The

198, 216, 229, 304, 336, (D), (ROLL); 70/240, release lever is positively returned to its initial position by 241, 256, 257 movement of the plunger in and out of the latching assembly.

HOOD LATCH WITH POSITIVE RETURN RELEASE LEVER SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to an automobile hood latch assembly having a positive return for the release lever.

One purpose of the invention is a hood latch assembly of the type described which is self-adjusting.

Another purpose is a hood latch assembly in which movement of the latching plunger in and out of the latching assembly is effective to positively return the release member to its initial position.

Another purpose is a hood latch assembly of the type described in which release thereof is effected from inside the automobile driving compartment.

Another purpose is a reliably operable compact hood latching assembly of the type described which is both self-adjustingland arranged for positive return of the release member.

Other purposes will appear in the ensuing specification, drawinp and claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The invention is illustrated diagrammatically in the following drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of the hood latch in the unlocked position;

FIG. 2 is a plan view, similar to hood latch in a locked position;

FIG.3 is a section along plane 3-3 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a view from the right side of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a partial plan view of a modified form of the invention;

FIG. 6 is a partial plan view, similar to FIG. 5, showing yet a further modified form of the invention; and

FIG. 7is a partial plan view, similar to FIGS. 5 and 6, showing an additional modified form of the invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The invention will be described in connection with an automobile hood latching assembly where the plunger is mounted on the hood of an automobile and the latching as sembly is in the automobile body. The positions can be reversed with equally satisfactory operation.

A plunger is indicated at 10 and may take the form of a generally U-shaped wire, illustrated particularly in FIG. 4. The mounting surface of the hood is indicated at I2 in FIG. 4.

A latching assembly housing 14, conventionally a stamped part, may have mounting brackets 16 and 18 at opposite sides thereof and may have a generally central opening 20 which, as illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, receives the plunger 10 to fasten the hood to the automobile body. The opening 20 may have an enlarged upper section 22 to correct for any misalignment between the plunger 10 and the opening.

Pivotally mounted on the housing 14 is a catch 24 which has a ratchet surface 26 and an opening 28. In the locked position of FIG. 2 the bottom section of the U-shaped plunger 10 is positioned within the opening 28 and within the opening 20 of the housing. An upper portion 30 of the catch 24- overlies the bottom-section of the plunger 10 to provide a positive lock for holding the plunger within the housing.

A pawl 32 is pivotally mounted on the housing 14 and has a projection 34 which cooperates with the ratchet section 26 of the catch 24 to hold the catch in any adjusted position. A coil spring 36, connected at its opposite ends to the pawl 32 and catch 24, normally, urges the pawl into locking relationship with the catch. FIG. 1 illustrates the relationship between the pawl and catch when the hood is open, whereas FIG. 2 illustrates the closed or locked position. A catch stop 38 is formed out of the housing 14 and is used to prevent the catch from rotating counterclockwise due to the force of the spring 36.

A release lever 40 is pivotally mounted onthe housing and pivots about the same point 42 as the pawl 32. A spring 44 is connected between the housingl4 and the release lever and FIG. I, but showing the LII normally holds the release lever in the full-line position of FIG. 1. A stop 43 limits the clockwise movement of the release lever and a stop SI limits counterclockwise movement. A wire 46, one end of which will conveniently terminate in an operating handle within the driving compartment of the automobile, is fastened to the lower end of the release lever 40, as at 48. The release lever 40 has a projection 50 positioned adjacent the pawl 32 such that movement of the release lever in a com terclockwise direction is effective to rotate the pawl in the same direction to move the projection 34 away from the ratchet surface 26. Normally the release lever will travel approximately 1 inch when releasing the catch. This travel is indicated, in dotted lines, diagrammatically at the bottom of FIG. I. 1

The release lever 40 may have a pair of cam surfaces indicated at 52 and 54. In the dotted line position of FIG. 1 note that the release lever 40 at least partially blocks the opening 20 in the housing ,l4. When the release lever is in the dotted line position, movement of the plunger 10 in or out of the opening 20 will cause the plunger to strike one of the cam surfaces 52 or 54 to thus move the plunger away from the opening and back to the full-line position of FIG. I.

In operation, arid assuming initially a locked position as in FIG. 2, when the wire 46 is pulled to the right, the release lever 40 will pivot in a counterclockwise direction, causing movement of the pawl 32 in the same direction. This will remove the projection 34 from the ratchet surface 26 to allow the catch 24 to pivot in a counterclockwise direction. This releases the plunger 10 which can then move upwardly to open the hood. Nomtally spring 44 will return the release lever to its initial position.

To lock the hood, downward movement of the plunger 10 will strike the catch 24, pivoting it in a clockwise direction. As the catch pivots, the ratchet surface 26 will pass by the projection 34 until such time as the plunger is completely received within the housing opening 20. The projection 30 of the catch 24 will then overly the bottom section of the plunger 10 to lock the plunger within the housing. The projection 34 will be in one of the notches forming the ratchet surface 26 to hold the catch in the locked position. The latch is self-adjusting in that once the plunger has moved into the opening 20 to whatever degree is possible, depending upon the relationship between the hood and the body of the automobile, the catch will be held in that particular adjusted position by the cooperation between the ratchet surface 26 and the projection 34 onthe pawl 32.

There have been instances in which after the release wire 46 has been pulled to the right, the force of spring 44 is not sufficient to pull the release lever 40 back to the full-line position of FIG. 1. At times, the release wire can be broken or rust, dirt, grime, etc., can inhibit its movement. However, once the catch has been released, upward movement of the plunger 10, against cam surface 54, will cause the release lever 40 to pivot in a clockwise direction and to move toward the full-line position of FIG. I. In like manner, if the plunger 10 has been removed from the latching assembly, but yet the release lever is still at least partially blocking the opening 20 in the housing 14, downward movement of the plunger 10, to relock the hood, will cause it to strike cam surface 52, again pivoting the release lever 40 back toward the full-line position of FIG. I. Thus, whenever the hood latch is released, there is positive assurance that the release member 40 will always return to the full-line position of'FIG. 1, thus insuring that the hood can be relocked.

In FIG. 5 a catch 74 may have a ratchet surface 76 with a number of notches terminating in a somewhat larger notch 78 new the bottom. The catch 74 is substantially identical with catch 24. A pawl 80 has a pair of closely spaced projections 82 and 84. In the open position of FIG. 5, the projections 87. and 84 are engaged with the lower end of the catch 74. In order to have a locking relationship between the pawl and the catch, the lower projection 84 must at least be positioned within the lower notch 86 in the series of notches making up the ratchet surface 76. The two projections on pawl 80 provide a more positive lock than a pawl with a single projection.

FIG. 6 shows a modified form of the invention in which a catch 60 has a ratchet surface 62 with two spaced notches 64 and 65. A pawl 66 has a pair of spaced projections indicated at 68 and 70. There are thus two positions for the catch. One in which the upper projection 68 is in the lower notch 64, and the second in which the lower projection 70 is in the upper notch 65. In the latter case, the lower surface of upper projection 68 will lie against the shoulder 72, at the top of ratchet surface 62. Thus, rather than having a number of positions of adjustment, as in FIGS. 1-4, the structure in FIG. 6 has only two positions.

In FIG. 7 a catch 88 does not have a ratchet surface, but instead has a smooth surface 90, with a shoulder 92 at one end and a somewhat differently angled shoulder 94 at its lower end. A pawl 96 has a single projection 98 which may either be in the open position of FIG. 7 or in a fully closed position in which the lower edge of the projection 98 will lie against the shoulder 92. Thus, the structure of FIG. 7 is not adjustable, but merely has an open and a closed position.

Of particular importance in the invention is the positive return of the release lever whenever the hood latch is open. The plunger cannot be removed from the latch without striking the release lever and directing it back to its fully open position. In like manner, even if the release lever has not moved completely back to its fully open position when the plunger moves out of the housing opening, when the plunger reenters the housing opening, the release lever will be pivoted in a clockwise direction to insure that the plunger can subsequently be fully locked within the housing on the body of the automobile. Thus, the positive return of the release member insures that the hood can always be relatched to the body of the automobile, even if the release cable, going back to the drivers compartment of the automobile, should become broken or stuck.

Whereas the preferred from of the invention has been shown and described herein, it should be realized that there are many modifications, substitutions and alterations thereto within the scope of the following claims.

lclaim:

1. In a latching assembly:

a housing;

an opening in said housing;

a plunger positioned to move in and out of said opening;

means pivotally mounted on said housing for locking said plunger in said opening,

a release lever pivoted on said housing,

means on said release lever, upon pivotal movement thereof, for effecting release of said locking means,

manual means attached to said release lever for causing unlocking movement thereof, with such movement positioning said release lever, at least partially, across said housing opening;

spring means connected between said housing and release lever for normally holding said release lever away from said housing opening, and

a cam surface on said release lever positioned for contact by said plunger when said release lever is at least partially across said opening.

2. The structure of claim 1 further characterized in that said manual means includes a wire, attached to said release lever, and arranged for remote manual operation.

3. The structure of claim 1 further characterized in that said release lever has a pair of cam surfaces, each positioned for contact by said plunger when said release lever is positioned across said opening, with one cam surface being positioned for contact by movement of said plunger out of said opening and the other cam surface being positioned for contact by said plunger when moving into said opening.

4. The structure of claim 1 further characterized in that said pivotal locking means includes a catch pivotally mounted on said housing and having means thereon for securing said plunger in said opening, and a pawl pivoted on sald housing, with cooperating means on the pawl and catch for locking said catch.

5. The structure of claim 4 further characterized in that the cooperating means on the pawl and catch include a ratchet construction on the catch and a locking portion on the pawl, positioned to mate with the ratchet portion on the catch.

6. The structure of claim 5 further characterized in that the ratchet and locking portion on the pawl are arranged to variably position the catch relative to the plunger to compensate for difierent relative positions of the plunger and housing.

7. The structure of claim 4 further characterized by and including an opening in said catch, said plunger being received in said opening, when positioned within the housing opening.

8. The structure of claim 4 further characterized in that said release lever includes means, for effecting pivotal movement of said pawl, upon release movement of said release lever.

9. The structure of claim 8 further characterized in that the means on the release lever causing pivotal movement of the pawl include a projection position to contact the pawl upon movement of the release lever.

10. The structure of claim 4 further characterized by and including spring means urging said pawl into a locking relationship with said catch.

ll. The structure of claim 4 further characterized by and including stops on said housing for positioning said catch and said release lever. 

1. In a latching assembly: a housing; an opening in said housing; a plunger positioned to move in and out of said opening; means pivotally mounted on said housing for locking said plunger in said opening, a release lever pivoted on said housing, means on said release lever, upon pivotal movement thereof, for effecting release of said locking means, manual means attached to said release lever for causing unlocking movement thereof, with such movement positioning said release lever, at leAst partially, across said housing opening; spring means connected between said housing and release lever for normally holding said release lever away from said housing opening, and a cam surface on said release lever positioned for contact by said plunger when said release lever is at least partially across said opening.
 2. The structure of claim 1 further characterized in that said manual means includes a wire, attached to said release lever, and arranged for remote manual operation.
 3. The structure of claim 1 further characterized in that said release lever has a pair of cam surfaces, each positioned for contact by said plunger when said release lever is positioned across said opening, with one cam surface being positioned for contact by movement of said plunger out of said opening and the other cam surface being positioned for contact by said plunger when moving into said opening.
 4. The structure of claim 1 further characterized in that said pivotal locking means includes a catch pivotally mounted on said housing and having means thereon for securing said plunger in said opening, and a pawl pivoted on said housing, with cooperating means on the pawl and catch for locking said catch.
 5. The structure of claim 4 further characterized in that the cooperating means on the pawl and catch include a ratchet construction on the catch and a locking portion on the pawl, positioned to mate with the ratchet portion on the catch.
 6. The structure of claim 5 further characterized in that the ratchet and locking portion on the pawl are arranged to variably position the catch relative to the plunger to compensate for different relative positions of the plunger and housing.
 7. The structure of claim 4 further characterized by and including an opening in said catch, said plunger being received in said opening, when positioned within the housing opening.
 8. The structure of claim 4 further characterized in that said release lever includes means, for effecting pivotal movement of said pawl, upon release movement of said release lever.
 9. The structure of claim 8 further characterized in that the means on the release lever causing pivotal movement of the pawl include a projection position to contact the pawl upon movement of the release lever.
 10. The structure of claim 4 further characterized by and including spring means urging said pawl into a locking relationship with said catch.
 11. The structure of claim 4 further characterized by and including stops on said housing for positioning said catch and said release lever. 